Twelve weeks on the planet

It’s amazing how much your life can change in a year.  Last year at this time I was still recovering from a bullet wound.  How insane is that?  I still struggle with the reality of this statement, “My husband shot me . . . in the ass.”   I gained a little weight after the accident, and I was complaining about my new squishiness to a very wise girl friend who replied, “maybe your body’s getting ready for a baby.” Not two weeks later did I discover that I was pregnant.

I actually took the pregnancy tests at my parents’ house.  I wasn't feeling one hundred percent, and my mom suggested that I might be pregnant.  No way, I remember thinking.  However, we did just return from our honeymoon in Samoa – the land of coconut milk and honey and all things fertile.  I remember feeling like I was in trouble when I saw that little plus sign.  You spend years praying you don’t get pregnant (oops, cat’s out the bag. Didn’t wait till I was married), and then when you see that positive test it’s very surreal. The Great Samoan Hunter was on a work trip in San Francisco.  That was quite the phone call.  Honey, I have something to tell you.  Are you sitting down?

The past year flew by, but the past three months truly evaporated before my eyes.  This little human who was once sleepy and sedentary is now fully awake, kicking and grabbing and squealing. We're reminded daily by friends, family, and strangers (those are always entertaining conversations) how fast time flies.  Twelve weeks has passed since my little human made her arrival into our world.  I told the Great Samoan Hunter yesterday that those twelve weeks have been the happiest of my life.  I never fathomed one year ago that my life could be filled with this much love.    

Here's a snippet of what our little love bug is up to:

• Discovering her voice. Everyday she extends her range, which delights us both.  The changing table seems to be her choice locale for chatting/singing. It's great fun hearing her 'talk' and express different emotions.  
• Discovering her hands.  She will extend her right hand and S.T.A.R.E.  I wonder if she thinks it will disappear if she looks long enough.  She also loves to eat her hands -- she seems to be after her thumbs, but can't figure out how to isolate them.
• Smiling for days.  This child smiles with her whole face -- her eyes, her dimples, her eyebrows. Smiling is her favorite.
• Napping not so much.  We struggle with sleep.  Nighttime is not such a battle.  Catnaps seem to be the rave -- ten minutes here, thirty minutes there.  Occasionally we will get a two or three hour nap, and I seriously don't know what to do with myself.  I go into baby withdrawals and break out in hives. Hello, my name is Hailey, and I am an addict.  I'm addicted to my child.
• Eating like a champion.  She is Samoan.
• Playing on her mat. She loves her hanging animal friends and has started batting and grabbing and swiping at them. She's also started scooting herself around on her back from one end to the other. I am not ready for her to be mobile yet, though she desperately wants to move.
• Delighting all those who are lucky enough to meet her.  

This list could go on for days and days.  It's difficult to write about how much you love your child without overdosing in cliches and cheesy love song lines.  I can't help it, she lights up my life.

I put together a random slideshow of Malia's first twelve months on the planet. I plan to do these updates monthly so family and friends near and far can see her growth.  Notice how the pictures start out really sleepy and then become really smiley.   Be sure to click the upper left hand corner to turn on the music. Last night I previewed the slideshow with the Great Samoan Hunter in bed.  I am pretty sure he teared up too.

Also, here's a video of her playing on her mat last night. Pure delight!

Where is the pause button?

I have to make a proclamation. I miss the blog. I miss writing. I miss taking pictures. I am going to try with all my might to post more frequently. I want to be able to look back in one year, five years, ten years and see what we were up to.

I need to hold myself accountable.  Thus, the public announcement.

My excuse (I am full of them), I still have yet to figure out the very tipsy concept of time management with child.  I always thought babies liked to sleep.  My child fights sleeps, naps in particular, like she's being water boarded. When she does nap, I transform into a maniac with my hair on fire.  I rush from one chore to the next -- laundry, dishwasher, sweep our endlessly dirty hardwood floors -- all the while juggling a piece of toast and cup of coffee.  If I manage the time, I shower and maybe brush my teeth.

But You know what? I wouldn't trade these days for anything.  Each day she transforms into a new little person. I swear she wakes up from a nap chubbier and longer with a new sound in her vernacular of coos and chirps.

This weekend we had a few friends over to watch the football games -- boo, hiss -- and at one point we had five little girls under the age of five.  The Great Samoan Hunter looked at me as they scrambled after one another, "guess this is what birthday parties will be like." I love that he has that foresight.

It's been grey and foggy here in the big city.  We spent Christmas at our cabin that is decking out with it's own natural hot spring pool.  Today I am longing to sit in that hot, steamy water.  Baby M loved her first swim.  She's very much a water baby. Bath time is most certainly a highlight of her day and ours.

Here's our water girl and the family swimming at Christmas.

Baby M turns TWELVE WEEKS old on Friday.  Where is the pause button? I strive to be one of those obsessively cute Pinterest moms who tracks her baby's monthly progress.  Any suggestions for fun ideas? 

It's been nearly two hours without my little person.  I must go upstairs and stare at her until she wakes up. xoH